BRMC and The Rapture

The two seemingly disparate bands on this bill, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club (BRMC), whose signature sound includes big, fuzzy guitars, and The Rapture, who fall somewhere in between post-punk and no wave, actually have a couple of things in common. Both were conceived in San Francisco but have since relocated to L.A. and Brooklyn respectively, and both have enjoyed a loud, raucous ride on the hype train. But despite their differences, the two will share the evening at the Grand Ballroom and you can decide for yourself if they're worth the noise.

It has been said that the current wave of 'dancepunk' found its genesis in The Rapture. It's true, the band's first LP "Mirror", released in 1999, was one of the first to showcase this new herky jerky, disco-infused, spastic sort of rock. The trio, comprised of Vito Roccoforte on drums, Luke Jenner on guitar and vocals and Matt Safer on bass, followed it up with an EP released on Sub Pop in 2001. "Out of the Races and on to the Tracks", the title track of which is an urgent off-kilter, post-punk anthem and possibly their best track to date, found them critical acclaim, put them on the major label map and spawned a number of copycat bands. In 2002 they added multi-instrumentalist Gabriel Andruzzi to the line-up and the buzz grew deafening when they released a 12", "House of Jealous Lovers". But delays on their second full-length "Echoes" killed the buzz and by the time it finally came out at the end of 2003, most had forgotten about this squalling, experimental, screechy rock outfit. But "Echoes" is definitely worth a listen with several Cure-sounding synth-rock tracks to more seizure/dance inspiring guitar licks, The Rapture is sure to get your ass shaking.

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, named for the motorcycle gang in Marlon Brando's The Wild One, was formed in 1998 by Peter Hayes and Robert Turner, former high-school buddies who had bonded over their love for British rock bands in the vein of the Stone Roses and over shoegazer groups like My Bloody Valentine. They were joined by drummer Nick Jago and created their own sound of noise pop, borrowing heavily from the bands they so admired. The group garnered a devoted following from their live shows and a 16-track demo got the attention of some big, important music folks across the pond not to mention some big, important labels as well. In March of 2000 they signed with Virgin and a year later released their self-titled debut, which quickly found heavy rotation in the stereos of indie rockers as well as the trendier-than-thou Urban Outfitters stores. Though they continued to gather steam in the UK, their second release, "Take Them On, On Your Own", though critically well-regarded, did not find a huge U.S. fan base when it was released last September. Enveloping guitars and a spacey rock backbone have kept Black Rebel Motorcycle Club on the scene and in magazines (they recently graced the cover of Magnet), but even with all their reverb-laden fuzz, it's hard to drown out the resonant hype.